Jamaica Defender Moore Misses Vital Costa Rica Clash To Change Clubs
Liam Moore has returned from representing Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz so missed last night’s must-win showdown with Costa Rica, which ended with a 1-0 defeat, to join English Championship outfit Stoke City on loan.
The 29-year-old, a second-half sub against Mexico and an unused sub against Panama, has joined Stoke for the rest of the season in a swap deal from fellow Championship side Reading – which saw Tom Ince move in the other direction.
Anything apart from a rare victory, when Jamaica tackle Costa Rica in their CONCACAF World Cup qualifier in Kingston, will end any hopes of the Boyz qualifying for November’s FIFA World Cup finals in Qatar.
Jamaica are languishing in seventh place in the eight-nation qualifying table. With four games remaining the Boyz require maximum points from all of their matches on top of results from Costa Rica, El Salvador and Panama swinging in their favour.
Moore remains under contract until next year with Reading, where he has played just 17 games this term partly due to an injury before Christmas. However, it seems most unlikely that he will return to the club, where he made over 200 appearances since joining in 2016, after being stripped of the captaincy last month.
His exit during the transfer window was expected, and denies Moore a 10th international appearance.
Moore took to the social media platform of Instagram and wrote: “@readingfc I just want to say thank you. Thank you to all the good people I have met along the way over my last six years at the club.
“Obviously I’m hurt and disappointed by some of the things said and done over the last couple of weeks, but I have too much respect for the club to speak against it. The messages from the staff and players speaks volumes for me.”
Reading issued a statement last month that explained Moore had spoken with manager Veljko Paunovic to express his desire to leave the team.
The statement read: “The Club says it is disappointed that Liam [Moore], a player awarded one of the club’s most significant contracts, has now stated his intention to move on.”
Moore, who represented England youth (Under-17, Under-20 and Under-21), was one of half-a-dozen English-born players to receive their inaugural call-up by Jamaica in March 2021. Yet the Boyz have stuttered despite this influx of talent.
His debut was a disaster as the United States humiliated Jamaica 4-1 in a friendly last March. Moore played a pivotal role under former head coach Theodore Whitmore, but has been out of favour under recently-installed head coach Paul Hall.
However, Moore could earn more international caps next month when Jamaica face their final three World Cup qualifiers against El Salvador, Canada and Honduras.
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